Ugh. I hate funerals. They are all so fake and stiff... nothing at all like the person you're missing. When I die, I want my funeral to be at a theatre, not a church. It would be more me. I want people to be as happy as possible, I don't want them to waste their time praying over my dead body. I'd be dead! Why would I need prayer? Remember the good times, don't dwell on me being dead.

Sorry, mini-rant. I had to go to the funeral of one of my co-workers this morning, and I was pretty miserable. I hate how stiff it was... ugh.

Be glad... I eliminated a chapter of this, taking a minor plot point and briefly addressing it in this... I knew you all wanted to get to the good stuff!

R.I.P.

Mike

See you later, my friend

In all the time she had known him, Glinda had never seen Fiyero more excited than he was once the Village was back in sight. That was not an easy feat, especially considering his stress over Cadyrn and Morrible. "The Animal Village. I can't say I'm surprised Elphaba would choose to live here, she was always more Lizard than Girl," Morrible said, trying to be condescending but no one else paid her any mind.

They were given a hero's welcome, even though all they had done was retrieve the biggest threat to their way of life. Morrible and Cade were passed off, into the small, never before used jail; the police station doubled as a post office. Officer Brier, the Leopard police chief was pleased to finally be of service. Luckily, there were two cells.

Glinda felt a little bad about it. Something about the entire situation wasn't right. She had known Cade far too long for him to simply betray her. It was completely out of character. That didn't mean she thought he was completely innocent. She knew what she had seen, Cade letting Morrible loose of her bonds. She could have run off, everything ruined.

She remembered standing around, passing a canteen of water between them. He had sidled up next to her, "Thank you. You were the one who kept a level head. Fiyero overreacted."

Glinda had made a face. "The woman he loves was threatened." Something in his comment had registered as wrong. Did he think that it was no big deal, to have nearly let Morrible escape? She couldn't put her finger on it. In no way did she think Fiyero had been in the wrong. It made her head hurt to think about it.

As much as she wanted to, she knew she had to allow Fiyero to see Elphaba himself, first. There would be time later for the girls to reunite. So Fiyero entered the home, alone, passing Valia Dillamond on her way out. She smiled. She didn't recognize his true human form, but knew it was him all the same. He pushed the door open slowly, taking everything in.

The little cottage hadn't changed. It was as neat as ever, sunlight streaming past the opened curtains. Elphaba was in the bed, half asleep. "Fae?" He said quietly, hoping not to startle her. "Fae, it's me, we're back."

Her eyes fluttered open, then widened in surprise. "Yero! You're... just look at you!" Her voice was weak, quiet, but her excitement was tangible. He laughed a little, pushing stress aside. He slipped into the bed beside her. He picked her hand up and kissed it before laying it back down on the bed. "How?"

"Glinda."

Her eyes narrowed. "Glinda?"

He nodded. "Boq too, he's here. I think she's been putting the Grimmerie to good use. She claims she doesn't know what she's doing, but I'm not convinced. She's better than she thinks."

She confirmed it, "She never really expected to be good at some skill. I'm proud of her." She was quiet for a long moment. She had fallen back into an uneasy asleep. Glinda had said more than once that her condition shouldn't change at all. He supposed she actually hadn't got any worse, but the effects of being sick were easy to see. She couldn't have been eating very much, she was thinner than ever. He decided he would have to have Morrible cast the new spell as soon as possible, hopefully the next day.

She rolled over, accidentally colliding with him. She was clearly confused for a minute. "You're still here?"

His eyes narrowed. "Of course I am, Fae. Why would I leave?"

She looked uncomfortable, shifting away from him. He sat up and could see that she was looking out the window. The sun had just begun to set, and the sky was pink. "I just figured you wouldn't still be here." It clearly wasn't her whole answer though.

"Why not? I've spent the last few days away from you. I'm not going anywhere." He held her hand; it felt too bony.

"Stop, you can stop." She waved a hand, cutting him off. "I understand, Yero, I do. You're perfect again, and just look at me. I can't even stand on my own two feet. Don't force yourself to stay here because you're supposed to. You've done far too much for my sake. You'd be so much better off if you just left."

He was more than a little horrified. Where had she gotten the idea that he would leave her in her head? "Elphaba Thropp, shut up. I am not, and will not ever leave you. Ever. I love you, you crazy woman. I couldn't leave if I wanted to."

"But what about once I'm gone?" Her question was simple, and he realized that all they had accomplished was bringing Morrible to the camp. They had no reason to think Morrible even could help Elphaba, much less would. Elphaba still believed she would die soon, and he truthfully had no reason to think otherwise.

"You aren't going anywhere. I won't let you." He gently pulled her closer to him, wrapping his arms lightly around her. She felt oddly fragile. "You are going to get better." He brushed his lips across her forehead. "Magic or not, you will get better. And then we'll be together, for the rest of our lives. I promise you that, Elphaba."